The Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has accused the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, of lying and using some chieftains of the party to spread falsehood against his person.
The statement from Wike is a reaction to a recent Arise Television interview granted by Atiku and the unfolding events in the aftermath of the PDP presidential primary election.
This was made known by Wike on Friday while speaking at the Port Harcourt International Airport in the Rivers State capital shortly after he returned from a foreign trip.
Wike disagrees with Atiku
Wike, while having a chat with journalists said, “I have decided to be quiet because PDP is a party I love so much. I have moved on to conclude my social contract with the people of Rivers. However, it is time to let Nigerians know the truth.”
Wike disagreed with Atiku Abubakar’s speech during the unveiling ceremony of Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as his running mate, promising to respond to both the party’s flagbearer and the party chieftains whom he described as Atiku’s ‘attack dogs’ one by one and line by line in due time.
He said posterity would not forgive him should he fail to set the record straight and promised to clear the air after the commissioning of the projects lined up for inauguration by the state government.
Atiku yet to send any delegation to Wike
In his reaction to the setting up of a reconciliation committee by the party leadership, the Rivers State Governor disclosed that the presidential flagbearer had yet to send any delegation to him.
He accused the former vice president of coming to his house to beg for support earlier on but all of a sudden does not know the way to his house any longer after the choice of Okowa as running mate.
Governor Wike who said the idea of setting up a committee was only being seen in the media, however, insisted that he would remain in the PDP and help rebuild the party.
He noted, “I am not a slave and will not be a slave. I am freeborn of the country.’’
What you should know
- Recall that on June 16, Atiku Abubakar chose Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, as his running mate in the 2023 presidential election.
- This decision has, however, caused a lot of disagreements and created divisions within the party and among party stakeholders, as some commended the choice of Okowa while others rejected it, saying Atiku should have picked Wike who was the runner-up in the primary in the stead of his Delta counterpart.
- Atiku Abubakar in a pre-recorded exclusive interview on Arise Television programme, The Morning Show, said that he chose a vice presidential candidate that can deliver and is ready to take over from him.
- He said he chose who he could work with, and pointed out that in arriving at the decision, he consulted widely with various stakeholders in the PDP including governors, the national working committee, board of trustees and others.
